Rethinking our Region: From Infrastructure to Social Structure

WHYY and the Penn Project for Civic Engagement, along with the William Penn Foundation and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, invite you to Rethinking our Region: From Infrastructure to Social Structure.  The evening will include a special screening and focused dialogue on  The New Metropolis, a two-part documentary series about America’s First Suburbs.  Here are the specifics:

When:     6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., Thursday, September 24.
               (6:00 p.m. registration and light dinner)

Where:    WHYY’s Civic Space, 150 N. Sixth St. on Independence Mall.

What:      Screening followed by discussion to develop directions for action      

After the viewing, we’ll hold facilitated small group discussions of how the issues raised by the program play out in our region, and what steps could be taken to address them. We’ll end with a closing plenary to share ideas and possible next steps.

WHYY, PPCE and the William Penn Foundation are joined in this effort by The Southeastern Pennsylvania First Suburbs Project, 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania and the New Jersey Regional Coalition.  Each of theses organizations is dedicated to stabilizing and revitalizing older developed communities in the region.  They are interested in turning what we learn from the small group and plenary sessions into action.

The New Metropolis, is a two-part documentary series about America’s first suburbs and the challenges they are facing: a dwindling tax base, population and business loss, decaying infrastructure, and increased racial tensions. Filmmaker Andrea Torrice’s account of the rise and fall of the nation’s older, first suburbs is comprised of two episodes: A Crack in the Pavement: Rebuilding America’s First Suburbs; and The New Neighbors: How One Town Created a Vibrant, Integrated Suburb.

The dialogue will be led by the Penn Project for Civic Engagement, the nationally known expert on productive dialogue that has led projects locally such as the Central Delaware Visioning Project, Great Expectations, The Big Canvas and the recent Tight Times, Tough Choices city budget workshops.

The evening is made possible by generous support from the William Penn Foundation and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC).

Space is limited to this invitation-only event.  Please RSVP by return email or by calling Linda Breitstein of the PPCE at 215-898-1112.

If there is someone else you think can add to the discussion in this region who you want to make sure is invited to attend, please let us know their name and contact information so we can add them to our invitation list.

Sincerely,

Chris Satullo
Executive director of news and civic dialogue WHYY

Harris Sokoloff
Director Penn Project for Civic Engagement